About Anna

A Story About An Ethical Jewellery Maker.......

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About Anna

A Story About An Ethical Jewellery Maker.......

I was born in Birmingham and graduated from the prestigious Birmingham School of Jewellery in 2000 but the magic really began to happen in 2010 when I moved to the Malvern Hills! The wonderful and beautiful environment that I can see from my window is constantly changing with the seasons and is now the main influence on my designs.

However, my interest in all things arty started at a very early age, when even at primary school, I would often tell my teachers that I was going to be an artist when I grew up! I'm not sure they took me all that seriously at age 5 but I continued to follow this dream all the way through school, taking up residence in the art room and producing numerous drawings, paintings and three dimensional masterpieces!

At age 16, my parents took me to a careers fair, probably hoping that I'd see sense and choose a proper job, but here I discovered that I could study for a degree in Jewellery and Silversmithing, and from this point on, I decided that this was going to be my chosen path.

On completion of my degree, I studied for a Post Graduate Certificate in Education and taught Art and Design & Technology full time for several years before finally making the decision to set up as a designer/maker in 2006.

My business has evolved naturally over the last few years, and following a couple of breaks to have babies, I now find myself becoming an established gold and silversmith, and am able to specialise in designing and making unique one-off pieces, mostly engagement and wedding rings.

My passion for nature and the environment is a constant influence on both my life and my business and wherever possible I work in recycled gold and silver, always using ethically sourced metals and stones. Everything I make is done so using traditional hand tools and techinques, and I'm always looking for new ways to keep my business as "green" as possible. Recently these have included switching to green energy and joining my local car share scheme.

Finally, well done for reading to the end of this. I hope you enjoy browsing the website.

Anna in her workshop

Anna in her workshop

Ethical Policy

So, how is Anna Fine Jewellery "ethical"?

Ethical Policy

So, how is Anna Fine Jewellery "ethical"?

Each and every piece of my jewellery is made by hand, by me, in my little workshop in Malvern, UK. No mass produced far eastern imports allowed!

My strong environmental beliefs at home are transferred straight to the business. I re-use, recycle and compost as much as is physically possible, my energy is green, I don’t leave appliances and electrical equipment on standby, I always buy local wherever possible and have recently ditched the family car and joined a local car share scheme. My journeys to the post office to post your jewellery are made either on foot or by bike!

All of my jewellery is made by hand using traditional tools and techniques. My metals are purchased locally from a company that recycles gold and silver and all waste material is kept to the bare minimum or re-smelted to create new pieces. This is good for me and for you as it helps to keep costs down. I'm also registered to work in Fairtrade Gold.

Your jewellery will arrived beautifully packaged in a box that is either recycled or reusable. In order to get this to you in the post, I will often re-use old postal packaging where available. I know that a shiny new cardboard box “looks” nicer, but as the postal packaging is just there to protect the lovely gift box that your item will arrive in, I made the decision to re-use as many old items of postal packaging as possible to help minimise my companies environmental impact. Just think of all those trees that are now still standing!This also helps to keep my, and therefore your costs down even further.

I enjoys spending as much time as possible enjoying the beautiful and inspiring environment in which I live. I want it to stay that way, so please feel free to comment or make suggestions where you think any improvements could be made.

Thank you,

Anna x

Gemstones

Ethical Gemstones

Gemstones

Ethical Gemstones

Traditionally, a diamond is thought of as being the ultimate choice of gemstone. The kimberly process was set up to combat the sale of "conflict" diamonds, and is something that virtually all uk jewellers now adhere to, but there's no regulations of things like working conditions and child labour.

For mined stones, there's currently no official "fair trade" certification but there are a few companies that make sure they know exactly where each stone they sell comes from and can verify that the miners are paid a fair wage and have good working conditions. For mined diamonds and gemstones, these are the only companies that I will buy from.................but................

In order to get a 1 carat diamond, a very deep hole has to be dug and between 200 - 250 tonnes of earth has to be moved.

There are however, a few alternatives that don't require any holes to be dug at all:

Moissanite - this is a white stone, made of silicon carbide that's an excellent alternative. It's incredibly sparkly and almost as hard as an actual diamond.

Lab grown Diamond-Hybrid - This is a real diamond that is grown onto a crystal core. It's a very high quality stone that's comparable in cut, colour and clarity to the best natural diamonds. To the naked eye, jewellers would not be able to tell the difference, making this an excellent ethical and affordable choice.

Lab created Diamond - these are grown in highly-controlled laboratory conditions that simulate the earth’s natural growing environment, producing stones that are optically, physically and chemically identical to a mined diamond.

Cost Comparison:

Just like mined stones, the cost of lab grown stones can also vary depending on cut and quality but just to give you an idea, here are approximate costs to buy a good quality loose 5mm round (approx 1/2 carat) version of each stone.

Moissanite - £130

Diamond-Hybrid - £250

Lab Created Diamond - £900

Testimonials & Feedback

Testimonials and Feedback

Testimonials & Feedback

Testimonials and Feedback

Client feedback is very important to me. If you would like to submit a testimonial, comment on my work or have a suggestion for something you would like to see on my website please complete the form below and I will reward you with unlimited virtual cake!

Silver and Labrodorite (supplied by client) retro inspired ringMy ring has just arrived and I'm absolutely delighted! It's exactly what I wanted, and you've made a superb job of it. I chose you as I liked the examples of your work that you posted on FB, and you didn't disappoint! Will definitely use you again soon with the other stone, thankyou so much!

Silver and rose gold wedding ring set & silver wedding ringThank you so much for the amazing craft and time you put into the rings. We are so happy with them and they fit perfectly. We are getting so excited for next week. Once again thank you so much.

Grace Solitaire ringThank you for making such a beautiful engagement ring. My fiancé proposed to me on Valentines day, with our two children watching on. I was quite gob smacked and tearful. When he produced this gorgeous ring I was over the moon. It is exactly the ring I would have chosen and I am delighted. I have already spotted the wedding rings I want on your site.

Bespoke textured gold wedding ringsWe picked up our wedding rings today and they are absolutely gorgeous. Just what I had had in mind. Mine sits flush against my engagement ring and looks lovely. Thank you so much for all your hard work.

Engagement ring bought from Etsy shopI have been presented with one of your beautiful rings today as an engagement ring - it is absolutely wonderful and had the bonus of apparently being available at relatively short notice! We'll be back for the wedding bands!

Bespoke silver & fair-trade ruby ring:"Anna has been wonderful in making me a Mehndi ring in white gold set with a single ruby. I found Anna was very clear and detailed in her emails to me about pricing, materials used, sizing etc, and that was very much appreciated. She was also very sensitive about the reason for me buying the ring. This is a very special ring as my lovely husband died last year missing our 40th wedding anniversary which would have been in July. Knowing that he would have bought me a ruby, I decided to buy myself a ring and found Anna on the internet. I love her work and my ring is absolutely beautiful - my late husband would have approved! On the first anniversary of my husbands death, Anna was kind enough to meet me for coffee in Malverm to hand over the ring, and that turned what would have been sad day for me into a joyful one. Thank you Anna, you are a lovely young woman and deserve much success"

Dream Collection earrings:"I have a beautiful pair of earrings by Anna. They're absolutely gorgeous with fantastic detailing and clever design. I always get compliments when I wear them, and I love them!"

Bespoke gold wedding rings:"Just wanted to let you know that the rings have just turned up and we are over the moon with them. You've done a fantastic job, they're exactly what we were after. Thank you so much for coming to our rescue. Our only regret is not coming to you first."

Brooch commission:"Anna was really helpful, sending me sketches before she began making it and suggesting different techniques to make it look extra special. Her work is incredible. The finished brooch looked exactly as we had hoped. I was also very impressed with how quickly Anna managed to finish the brooch and send it to me, which meant that it arrived in plenty of time for my girlfriend's birthday. I highly recommend her work, she has incredible talent and was a pleasure to buy from."

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